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Post by DataNinja on Apr 30, 2020 1:19:04 GMT
"Interesting..." Julia says, nodding. "Well, we do have the equipment here to do such a thing, yes. And test for compatibility if need be. I'll likely need the assistance of one of your companions, though, just to help with the procedure. This facility... was not built with full automation in mind. Frustrating lack of foresight on my part, but I was not exactly anticipating things to turn out like this."
There's a look of confusion from Rainbow for a moment, before a flash of realization of what Bea's asking crosses her face. "No," she says, softly. "Not... that I've seen, at least. Maybe just... sleeping, or something? I... don't know if that's how it could work."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Apr 30, 2020 1:40:03 GMT
"Probably for the best." Beatrice comments noncommittally to Julia. "If you can walk Rainbow through the compatibility test when we reach that point, I'd appreciate it. Oh, I'm Beatrice LaBrasta, since you've introduced yourself. You won't have heard of me, I wasn't born yet when you did your work here." She moves into the back rooms. "Well, if the purification process has already been streamlined, then I didn't play into that portion of history."
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Post by DataNinja on Apr 30, 2020 1:50:43 GMT
The room indicated has a bunch of equipment all along - and going into - the back wall, plus some tables, and readouts. "Okay," the voice of Julia comes over the PA, "at the very left-hand side, pull that compartment open, put the stones in, and I should be able to run it all from there."
Opening up the case, it's filled with stones, glittering with an oily, unnatural sheen. Things refract at a strange light, and it just feels... off. Rainbow immediately looks like she's feeling unwell, but looks over the amount, nodding. "Half... half that is more than enough for our purposes. Should be good for all three, and then some." She moves further away from the stone. "I'll just... wait over here, meanwhile..."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Apr 30, 2020 1:58:00 GMT
"Should've brought better PPE for this..." Beatrice pulled on her gloves a little tighter and deposited half the chunks of ore into the drawer one at a time, being careful not to fragment them as it would only discharge more dust into the air. "Our samples are in place." She closed the drawer, and the case once more.
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Post by DataNinja on Apr 30, 2020 2:02:20 GMT
"Alright," Julia says. "This will take some time to process - probably into tomorrow - so, I guess, feel free to make yourselves comfortable around here, or whatever. I have no idea if there's still anything around that really would still be comfortable. I'd suggest against poking around, though. There are probably some prototype things that never got finished that are still a little unstable if disturbed. Once again, I'd prefer not to have any explosions."
Rainbow seems to be better now that everything's closed, but the equipment obviously isn't as good as the case at shielding stuff. "So, uh... what do you want to do now?"
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Post by Robot on Apr 30, 2020 2:07:29 GMT
"Let's do the compatibility test, then head back into town for the evening, nothing more we can do here otherwise for the day. I don't honestly imagine that I've a partner I'll be compatible with, but I won't know until the attempt is made. I can make an informed decision from there."
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Post by DataNinja on Apr 30, 2020 3:09:25 GMT
"Alright," Julia says, "two rooms down. It'll pause my analysis on this stuff while we do it, but... it's not something that'll take too long. Bathe in some energy, little bit of blood, and we'll see what matches resonance. Simple."
It is indeed not that bad of a process, sitting in pretty much a doctor's room. If a little worrying, perhaps, to be bathed in elemental energy. Probably not any worse than an X-ray, though, right? Rainbow does need to help with the blood part, but it seems that she's seen enough of these happen that she knows more-or-less how to do it.
A few minutes pass in awkward waiting while the results are processed, but eventually the voice of Julia says, over the PA, "So, looks like you have a Steel soul. Bit more of an uncommon resonance, from my experience."
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 2:12:32 GMT
"Solenoid then..." Beatrice considered her hands for a moment, gently working her fingers along the knuckles of her opposite hand. "Have you charted what a Pokemon experiences through this process? I've been trying to prove that a semblance of them remains, but all of my research has come back inconclusive with no controls."
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 5:00:55 GMT
"There has been no way that I have figured out for a Pokémon to communicate how they feel during the merging process," Julia states, matter-of-factly. "However, anecdotally, Administrator Hansen did report feeling instincts of and a connection to his Zoroark. And Administrator Voss... well, she deteriorated rather severely in the sanity department after merging with her Spiritomb. Still highly intelligent, but with very few qualms, and immense sadistic feelings. It was probably a mercy for all involved that she was ended in Mauville. Some of the volunteers for the first wave did report odd sensations, and changes of preference. But there is no proof one way or another as to whether or not it's simply the mentality of the species, or the inclinations of that particular Pokémon. It's... not really possible to tell if there is one sole mentality, if they've mentally merged, or if it's just at the genetic level twisting the perceptions. We may never know for sure."
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 15:37:47 GMT
"I see. I'll be back tomorrow then with my Magnezone, and debate my course in the meanwhile otherwise. Enjoy your new research while it lasts, shy of assisting you in extricating from that machine, there won't be much for me to do here once my business is concluded. I'm afraid my fields of expertise don't lend themselves to machinery, either." Gathering her things and her thoughts, Beatrice made for the panel that moved them back out into the facility proper. "I wonder if... maybe it would be more prudent to wait until we arrive back at your home, Rainbow. Imagine the spectacle... though I can't imagine it would be pleasant for me."
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 18:51:16 GMT
"I don't imagine that I'll be going anywhere anytime soon," Julia says, dryly. "My body died in the incident, and the only bot that had the ability to actually contain me was destroyed in the problem that got me into this mess. So, whatever, take your time. I'm not going anywhere at this rate. Maybe I'll suffer brain-death eventually, but I can't tell."
As they wander back out, Rainbow says, "At the very least, might be good to wait until right before you're ready to go... the people outside might get suspicious if suddenly you walk outside looking like me."
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 20:06:45 GMT
"Very true, and I wouldn't want to alert them to the presence of undiscovered... salvage." Beatrice wrinkled her nose a little. "Yellow, we've stowed what we needed to if you're ready to head out. I suppose I'll be challenging Mossdeep's gym sooner rather then later, once my friends have recovered... then it will be final preparations and... onward to another time." The statement finished with a breathy air of excitement.
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 20:21:50 GMT
"Yeah, okay, sure," Yellow says, shrugging, reappearing from a doorway.
"I don't know if we could, uh..." ventures Rainbow, as they begin to leave the area, "maybe... look around the area? Just to... see how things are?"
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 21:32:07 GMT
"Sure Rainbow, this place is more important to you then anyone else, and any insights you can provide into where we're going will probably be invaluable to me. Hopefully I can keep my times straight." She giggled softly. "We do still need to find a spot to hide the History Capsule after all."
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 21:49:00 GMT
Rangers look like they want to ask things when the trio emerge, but also give the impression that they were asked not to ask. By this time, it's in the afternoon, so after dropping off her injured 'mon at the Center, the three head out into the yonder of Mossdeep.
Overall, it's definitely a spread-out community, more industrialized than Verdanturf, but with a bit of the same vibes. Though, in this case, it's definitely outward-facing, with the smell of the ocean, rather than the claustrophobic valley of the other town.
Rainbow takes delight in showing where different buildings would be - the archival center, smith, bakery, markets, all sorts of different things - though they're all mostly in a bit of a cluster off to the part of the city near-ish the Space Center. The rest of the wandering mostly seems to be the girl taking advantage of the safety to just... wander around in the wide-open areas, not needing to worry about being attacked, and just basking in the sunlight and the ocean's breeze, the sound of the waves at the bottom of the cliffs sounding rhythmically.
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 22:51:42 GMT
Beatrice is content to let Rainbow go where she will, taking vicarious joys in the looks of wonderment and peace that her friend carries in a place that, as it is elaborated for her, is not entirely safe despite being the stronghold she grew up in. She lets Solenoid wander as he'd like, intent on speaking with him in seriousness later. She didn't want to think of it as a sacrifice, but without proof to the contrary, it both was and wasn't until proven otherwise. "Is the sky still blue, and the sea still... well... other then housing innumerable unseen threats, is it still beautiful? Weird to wax nostalgic about that kind of thing, I know... but, my imagination keeps latching on and running away with wayward concepts, foreign constellations and a red sky."
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 23:10:42 GMT
The Magnezone mostly meanders, taking in everything, the sights and the sounds, never lingering on any one thing too long.
"The sky is... a little darker," Rainbow says, "With clouds that tend to loom overhead. Sometimes they fully clear, but even on the clearest days, there is always an... oppressive feeling. And the ocean reflects that. But... overall, it's the same. It's mostly a feeling, I guess. Rocks feel more jagged, trees harsher and more looming. Clouds heavier, winds bite more. Waves are more thunderous, all of that. Here, this time... it just feels gentler. And that might just because I tend to feel nature more. You might not notice a difference. But there is beauty... it's just dangerous."
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 23:13:36 GMT
"A feralness to the world itself." She commented softly, taking Rainbow's hand in hers. "When we get there, please impress upon me the need for caution. I've never had to be constantly vigilant like that, and I hope it isn't for long when it does occur. I can only imagine the toll bringing yourself, plus two others beyond the dark age will take on you."
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Post by DataNinja on May 1, 2020 23:24:12 GMT
"It should hopefully go smoother than my span here," she says. "If all this stone is purified, then I will have easily more than six times the amount I had to get here. Not having ever been able to judge the span before... I feel like I have a better grasp on it."
"But I am sure that you will be fine there. You're strong, and you catch onto things quick. I feel that you won't need me to remind you of things."
She sits down, legs outstretched, staring across the ocean. "I hope that we soon can cause a return to this... but, if not, hopefully I can fix it in my memory."
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Post by Robot on May 1, 2020 23:44:28 GMT
"I wouldn't wish an entire lifetime of trying to fix someone else's mistakes on anybody, so I'd rather it not go quite so long." The trainer nudged her friend and smiled. "Either way, wherever, whenever, I'll be your companion and protector. I'm excited for the things we'll see together and the places we'll go, still, even if it is frightening and potentially dangerous." Quieting, she too turned her attention to the waves. Nothing in her repertoire would navigate the water, but that was what the boat would be for, when the time came. Too many unknown risks still.
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